Brady's Bunch

With impeccable timing, Parade scheduled its annual sales meeting in Naples, Florida, the weekend of the Northeast's (and Midwest's) Big Snow (and The Donald's wedding). Ad VP Jim Hackett reports everyone made it, including three ad salesmen who left home Saturday morning and didn't reach Naples until 5 a.m. Sunday. It took two days and two separate treks to JFK for Editor Lee Kravitz to become airborne. CEO (and Marine) Walter Anderson will be issuing campaign ribbons to hardy staffers.

Fascinating in the wake of Johnny Carson's death to read in the new Eugene B. Bergmann bio of Jean Shepherd that then-host Steve Allen wanted NBC to hire Shep to host the "Tonight Show." The network wasn't buying.

Hachette Filipacchi named Rob Sabin exec editor of their Sound & Vision. He'd been marketing director. The company also named two regional managers for Car & Driver and Road & Track, Bruce Kukuk out West and Don Rokowski in the Midwest.

Parade mag and American Heart Association are partnering on heart health this year, designated the "year of the heart." First cover story ran Feb. 6.

Child is staging its first-ever kids' fashion show today at Bryant Park in Manhattan, where all the new grownup clothes debut. Publisher Dave Mevorah tells me biz is starting the new year with a bang. February is up 25% in ad pages over `04.

Jessica Lange opens March 15 on Broadway as "Amanda Wingfield" the Laurette Taylor role) in "The Glass Menagerie." Seems like just yesterday she was the hottie in "King Kong" II.

Reed Business Information teams with NBC Universal to seed and launch the Quill Awards, the first national book award to include consumers in the voting process. Former Variety topper Gerry Byrne tells me they'll begin processing nominations in 15 to 17 categories May 1.

Grand, a magazine for grandparents, has gone national in Barnes & Noble and other bookstores. Christine Crosby is the brains behind the idea. She's 58, and a great-grandmother! And claims Americans over 50 control 77% of the nation's assets and have $800 billion in discretionary income. Don't tell my grandchildren, please.